'Fame' proves fleeting for NBC on Wednesday

After a strong two-hour debut last week, NBC's reality series "Fame" (9.9 million viewers, 3.2 rating/11 share among adults 18-49) slipped 30% in the demo in its second airing, falling behind repeats of Fox's "That '70s Show" (average of 7.7 million, 3.6/13) in the 8-9 p.m. time slot. With help from back-to-back reruns of "Law & Order," NBC still won the night in 18-49 with 3.8/12, according to preliminary Nielsen estimates. It also led every half-hour in total viewers, averaging 11.5 million for the night. Fox (7.5 million, 3.5/11) was second in 18-49, while CBS (9.2 million, 2.2/7) was No.2 in total viewers with a rerun of Celine Dion's Las Vegas show, "60 Minutes II" and "48 Hours." Nielsen's "fast national" ratings have Game 1 of the NBA finals delivering 8.1 million viewers and a 3.4/10 in 18-49. (Nellie Andreeva)